Editing Trenton, New Jersey (section)

==Economy==
[[File:Trenton Makes.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|The [[Lower Trenton Bridge]] is commonly referred to among locals as the "Trenton Makes Bridge."]]
Trenton was a major manufacturing center in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. One relic of that era is the slogan "Trenton Makes, The World Takes", which is displayed on the [[Lower Free Bridge (Trenton)|Lower Free Bridge]] (just north of the [[Trenton–Morrisville Toll Bridge]]).<ref>Bruder, Jessica. [https://www.nytimes.com/2004/05/02/nyregion/jerseyana-trenton-s-fighting-words.html "Jerseyana; Trenton's Fighting Words"] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160310171651/http://www.nytimes.com/2004/05/02/nyregion/jerseyana-trenton-s-fighting-words.html? |date=March 10, 2016 }}, ''[[The New York Times]]'', May 2, 2004. Accessed March 16, 2012. "''Trenton Makes, the World Takes'', reads the famous red neon sign that spans a bridge between the state Capitol and Morrisville, Pa., affectionately known by locals as the ''Trenton Makes'' bridge.... In its heyday, Trenton was a world-class producer of rubber, steel, wire rope, and pottery. The cables for three famous suspension bridges – the Brooklyn, George Washington and Golden Gate – were produced here at John A. Roebling's factory."</ref> The city adopted the slogan in 1917 to represent Trenton's then-leading role as a major manufacturing center for rubber, wire rope, ceramics and cigars. It was home to [[American Standard Brands|American Standard]]'s largest plumbing fixture manufacturing facility.<ref>Blackwell, Jon. [http://www.capitalcentury.com/1911.html "1911: 'Trenton Makes' history"] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080913061314/http://capitalcentury.com/1911.html |date=September 13, 2008 }}, ''[[The Trentonian]]''. Accessed October 28, 2014.</ref>

Along with many other United States cities in the 1970s, Trenton fell on hard times when manufacturing and industrial jobs declined. Concurrently, state government agencies began leasing office space in the surrounding suburbs. State government leaders (particularly governors [[William T. Cahill|William Cahill]] and [[Brendan Byrne]]) attempted to revitalize the downtown area by making it the center of state government. Between 1982 and 1992, more than a dozen office buildings were constructed primarily by the state to house state offices.<ref>Mickle, Paul. [http://www.capitalcentury.com/1984.html "1984: A whole new skyline"] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080723150350/http://capitalcentury.com/1984.html |date=July 23, 2008 }}, ''[[The Trentonian]]''. Accessed October 28, 2014.</ref> Today, Trenton's biggest employer is still the state of New Jersey. Each weekday, 20,000 state workers flood into the city from the surrounding suburbs.<ref>Raboteau, Albert. [http://www.nj.com/news/stories/tt130diverse.html "Diversifying city's economy a major goal for Trenton"] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141109074800/http://www.nj.com/news/stories/tt130diverse.html |date=November 9, 2014 }}, ''[[The Times (Trenton)|The Times]]'', January 30, 2003. Accessed October 28, 2014. "Another large goal is to lure private companies whose employees, officials say, are likely to work later in the evening and have more money to spend than the 20,000 or so state workers who swell downtown during business hours, then commute home to other municipalities."</ref>

Notable businesses of the thousands based in Trenton include [[Italian Peoples Bakery]], a wholesale and retail bakery established in 1936.<ref>[http://www.italianpeoplesbakery.com/bio.html History] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141101084901/http://italianpeoplesbakery.com/bio.html |date=November 1, 2014 }}, [[Italian Peoples Bakery]]. Accessed May 13, 2016. "The origin of Italian Peoples Bakery goes back to 1936 when Pasquale Gervasio, the patriarch of the family, opened a bakery on Hamilton Avenue in Trenton, New Jersey."</ref> [[De Lorenzo's Tomato Pies]] and [[Papa's Tomato Pies]] were also fixtures of the city for many years, though both recently relocated to the suburbs.

===Urban Enterprise Zone===
Portions of Trenton are part of an [[Urban Enterprise Zone]]. The city was selected in 1983 as one of the initial group of 10 zones chosen to participate in the program.<ref>[http://www.state.nj.us/dca/affiliates/uez/publications/pdf/tax_q&a_052709.pdf ''Urban Enterprise Zone Tax Questions and Answers''] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191227141613/https://www.state.nj.us/dca/affiliates/uez/publications/pdf/tax_q%26a_052709.pdf |date=December 27, 2019 }}, [[New Jersey Department of Community Affairs]], May 2009. Accessed October 28, 2019. "The Urban Enterprise Zone Program (UEZ) was enacted in 1983. It authorized the designation of ten zones by the New Jersey Urban Enterprise Zone Authority: Camden, Newark, Bridgeton, Trenton, Plainfield, Elizabeth, Jersey City, Kearny, Orange and Millville/Vineland (joint zone)."</ref> In addition to other benefits to encourage employment within the Zone, shoppers can take advantage of a reduced 3.3125% [[sales tax]] rate (half of the {{frac|6|5|8}}% rate charged statewide) at eligible merchants.<ref>[https://www.nj.gov/dca/affiliates/uez/about/ Urban Enterprise Zone Program] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190721130311/https://www.nj.gov/dca/affiliates/uez/about/ |date=July 21, 2019 }}, [[New Jersey Department of Community Affairs]]. Accessed October 27, 2019. "Businesses participating in the UEZ Program can charge half the standard sales tax rate on certain purchases, currently 3.3125% effective 1/1/2018"</ref> Established in January 1986, the city's Urban Enterprise Zone status expires in December 2023.<ref>[https://www.nj.gov/dca/affiliates/uez/publications/pdf/ZONE%20EXPIRATION%20DATES%20-%202018.pdf Urban Enterprise Zone Effective and Expiration Dates] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190923185010/https://www.nj.gov/dca/affiliates/uez/publications/pdf/ZONE%20EXPIRATION%20DATES%20-%202018.pdf |date=September 23, 2019 }}, [[New Jersey Department of Community Affairs]]. Accessed January 8, 2018.</ref>

The UEZ program in Trenton and four other original UEZ cities had been allowed to lapse as of January 1, 2017, after Governor [[Chris Christie]], who called the program an "abject failure", vetoed a compromise bill that would have extended the status for two years.<ref>Racioppi, Dustin. [https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/new-jersey/2017/02/10/christie-conditionally-vetos-uez-extension/97747842/ "Christie vetoes urban enterprise zone extension"] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190330031616/https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/new-jersey/2017/02/10/christie-conditionally-vetos-uez-extension/97747842/ |date=March 30, 2019 }}, ''[[The Record (North Jersey)|The record]]'', February 10, 2017. Accessed November 19, 2019. "Gov. Chris Christie on Friday conditionally vetoed the Legislature's attempt to extend the Urban Enterprise Zone status for its five charter communities, calling the economic revitalization program an 'abject failure' with a 'devastating impact' on state revenue.... The Legislature returned with what it called a compromise bill, A-4189, to extend the designation for two years instead of 10 for the first five UEZs -- Bridgeton, Camden, Newark, Plainfield and Trenton -- which expired on Jan. 1."</ref> In May 2018, Governor [[Phil Murphy]] signed a law that reinstated the program in these five cities and extended the expiration date in other zones.<ref>[https://www.state.nj.us/treasury/taxation/ueznotice.shtml "Notice: Law Reinstates Five Urban Enterprise Zones And Also Extends The Expiration Date Of 12 Other UEZs"] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190923185002/https://www.state.nj.us/treasury/taxation/ueznotice.shtml |date=September 23, 2019 }}, [[New Jersey Department of the Treasury]] Division of Taxation, May 30, 2018. Accessed November 19, 2019. "On May 30, 2018, Governor Murphy signed Senate Bill 846 (A3549). The law reinstated five expired Urban Enterprise Zones (UEZs). If your business is located in one of these zones, you may file an application to establish qualified business status. (Past certifications are no longer valid in these five zones). The five UEZs are in: *Bridgeton *Camden *Newark *Plainfield *Trenton. The UEZs in the five locations listed above expire on December 31, 2023."</ref>

In 2018, the city had an average property tax bill of $3,274, the lowest in the county, compared to an average bill of $8,292 in Mercer County and $8,767 statewide.<ref>[https://www.state.nj.us/dca/divisions/dlgs/resources/property_docs/18_data/18taxes.xls 2018 Property Tax Information] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191108153110/https://www.state.nj.us/dca/divisions/dlgs/resources/property_docs/18_data/18taxes.xls |date=November 8, 2019 }}, [[New Jersey Department of Community Affairs]], updated January 16, 2019. Accessed November 7, 2019.</ref><ref>Marcus, Samantha. [https://www.nj.com/politics/2019/04/these-are-the-towns-with-the-lowest-property-taxes-in-each-of-njs-21-counties.html "These are the towns with the lowest property taxes in each of N.J.’s 21 counties"] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191107172250/https://www.nj.com/politics/2019/04/these-are-the-towns-with-the-lowest-property-taxes-in-each-of-njs-21-counties.html |date=November 7, 2019 }}, NJ Advance Media for [[NJ.com]], April 30, 2019. Accessed November 7, 2019. "New Jersey’s average property tax bill may have hit $8,767 last year — a new record — but taxpayers in some parts of the state pay just a fraction of that.... The average property tax bill in Trenton was $3,274 in 2018, the lowest in Mercer County."</ref> The city had the sixth-highest property tax rate in New Jersey, with an equalized rate of 5.264% in 2020, compared to 2.760% in the county as a whole and a statewide average of 2.279%.<ref>[https://www.nj.com/politics/2021/03/here-are-the-30-nj-towns-with-the-highest-property-tax-rates.html "Here are the 30 N.J. towns with the highest property tax rates"] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220119182949/https://www.nj.com/politics/2021/03/here-are-the-30-nj-towns-with-the-highest-property-tax-rates.html |date=January 19, 2022 }}, NJ Advance Media for [[NJ.com]], March 15, 2021. Accessed January 19, 2022. "The average equalized tax rate in New Jersey was 2.279 in 2020, according to data from the Department of Community Affairs. Here is the list of 30 New Jersey towns with the highest property tax rates.... 6. Trenton Equalized tax rate in Trenton, Mercer County, was 5.264 in 2020 Average equalized tax rate in Mercer County: 2.760"</ref>